Waynesville Professional License Defense Attorney

Waynesville Professional License Defense Lawyer

You’ve worked hard for years and finally succeeded in finishing a demanding educational course of studies, such as law school, medical school, or another post-graduate degree. You have earned your professional license after passing your licensing tests. Unfortunately, you are now being investigated for a crime or professional misconduct. This can ruin your life, career, family relationships, income, and reputation.

Because most North Carolina licensed professionals lack expertise in dealing with a Board Law in North Carolina complaint or investigation, a professional license defense lawyer is necessary. There is no denying the importance of a lawyer for an administrative board hearing to support your defense.

If you have been accused of a crime or professional misconduct in North California, our Waynesville professional license defense attorneys can help. Contact us immediately if you’re facing complaints or an investigation by a professional board in North Carolina.

Don’t try to handle your professional hearing in North California alone. Having experienced legal counsel is crucial regardless of what allegations you are facing. As your trusted North Carolina professional board disciplinary actions hearing lawyers, we are ready to fight for your career and reputation.

Call us at (828) 702-8743 today for a free consultation.

Table of Contents

• Process of Complaints and Investigation By Professional Licensing Boards
  • Initial Response to the Complaint
  • Informal Conference/Interview/Meeting
  • Probable Cause Review
  • Formal Disciplinary Proceedings
  • Potential Appeal to a Superior Court or Appellate Courts
• Impact of Criminal Convictions on a Professional License
• What Activities Put Your Professional License at Risk?
• How Can a Professional License Defense Attorney Help You Defend Your License?
  • Defending You Against Licensing Board Disciplinary Actions
  • Issues Renewing or Getting a License
• Professionals We Help
• Contact a Trusted Waynesville Professional License Defense Attorney!

Process of Complaints and Investigation By Professional Licensing Boards

If a complaint has been filed against you with your licensing board or agency, you may be wondering what to do next and how a lawyer may assist you.

Different licensing boards regulate various professions. For instance, the North Carolina State Bar regulates attorneys and the North Carolina Medical Board regulates doctors.

Each professional licensing board has specific rules regarding professional licensing in the state, like criteria for obtaining a license, requirements for continuous training and education, procedures for resolving disputes, and guidelines about disciplinary actions that can be taken against a licensed professional.

The majority of professional licensing boards and organizations follow these general procedural steps for addressing complaints.

Initial Response to the Complaint

You will be compelled to respond in some way when the agency or Board receives and evaluates the complaint. The answer is typically provided in writing, but some boards may collect material through investigator-led interviews with you and others.

Informal Conference/Interview/Meeting

Many agencies plan an informal meeting to discuss issues where they might take action against you after evaluating your written response and possibly conducting an additional investigation. This meeting frequently includes at least one representative from the licensing Board or agency and staff personnel from the agency. You are free to bring counsel to these informal meetings.

Probable Cause Review

The licensing board or agency decides if there is reason to believe that a violation of the relevant standards, laws, or rules has occurred. A formal hearing or suggested disciplinary action may follow from this. Almost all boards and agencies do not allow you or your attorney to be present during this time.

Formal Disciplinary Proceedings

This entails attending a formal hearing in front of the licensing Board, the appropriate agency, or an administrative law judge at the Office of Administrative Hearings. The formal hearing often contains all the same components and aspects as a civil trial but without a jury. The licensing board or agency makes a decision, or an ALJ makes a recommendation to the licensing entity without a resolution by consent order.

Potential Appeal to a Superior Court or Appellate Courts

In general, requests are allowed, but there are few grounds for doing so. It is not a new court trial. Instead, the appeal is based on the administrative record. The courts often won’t overturn or alter an agency decision unless they discover that a licensed professional’s significant rights may have been harmed for several reasons.

Impact of Criminal Convictions on a Professional License

There are strict rules governing criminal accusations and convictions for many professions, such as doctor, nurse, lawyer, and teacher. Your current professional standing or ability to get a professional license may suffer significantly due to a criminal conviction. These repercussions range from a warning, censure, or probation up to losing your license.

When applying for a professional license, most licensing boards will check whether you have a criminal history. If you have been previously convicted of a crime, you must indicate so on your application. You may be asked to appear before the board to discuss your application and the conviction(s).

The board may deny you a license depending on the severity of the crime, the connection between the crime and your line of work, and the risk of harming the general public. You may be prevented from practicing your profession in other states without disclosing previous criminal convictions and license disciplinary actions.

Here’s an overview of some potential consequences of criminal convictions on your legal, nursing, or other professional licenses:

• Warning letter
• License suspension
• Citation
• Random drug screens
• Diversion program
• Practice supervision and restrictions
• Fines
• Probation
• Mandatory substance abuse treatment, rehabilitation, and education
• Loss of some insurance privileges

What Activities Put Your Professional License at Risk?

The requirements to receive and maintain a state license vary from one North Carolina Licensing Board to another.

The following are the most typical reasons we have seen professionals receive complaints, face disciplinary actions, or have an investigation opened against them:

• Lack of Professional Standards of care or representation of a patient or client
• Abuse or Neglect of a Patient
• Inappropriate Relationship with Patient or Client
• Breach of confidentiality of Patient or Client
• Use of Drugs While at work
• Being found in possession of controlled substances
• Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs
• Document Falsification

Our experienced Waynesville professional license defense will defend you in all professional licensure complaints. We will put our resources and skills to work for you and gather proof and any pertinent documents needed to support or help your case before the panel.

We will also advise you to set aside time as soon as the incident occurs so that you can record the sequence of events and any areas of doubt. Our attorneys recommend that you keep all documentation and evidence arranged in one safe spot, so it is always available and easy to retrieve.

How Can a Professional License Defense Attorney Help You Defend Your License?

The dedicated Waynesville professional license defense attorneys at Doug Edwards Law assist professionals in protecting their licenses when facing complaints, inquiries, or other licensing issues. We deal with various cases involving administrative law, licensure, ethical issues, grievances, and other significant professional licensing issues.

A licensing board is supposed to investigate allegations against a licensee when a complaint is made to the Board. A complaint and the subsequent investigation may jeopardize the licensee’s professional future. Depending on the circumstances, licensing boards may take disciplinary action against licensees that range in severity.

When your license is threatened by revocation, suspension, probation, or other disciplinary action owing to accusations of misbehavior or other wrongdoing, a professional license defense attorney fights to defend and protect your license.

Defending You Against Licensing Board Disciplinary Actions

Doug Edwards Law has a wealth of experience and has successfully represented professionals in various industries. We represent licensed professionals before all North Carolina licensing boards. Our primary focuses include but are not limited to:

• The North Carolina State Bar
• North Carolina Medical Board
• The North Carolina Board of Law Examiners
•  North Carolina Board of Nursing
• North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners
• North Carolina Board of Pharmacy
• North Carolina Board of Dental Examiners
• North Carolina Board of Veterinary Medicine

Issues Renewing or Getting a License

Professional license defense attorneys assist licensees with license renewal and issuance concerns, as well as help them defend their licenses against accusations of misconduct. For instance, a person with a criminal history may experience difficulties getting or renewing a license in various businesses. A professional license defense attorney’s counsel may be beneficial in such circumstances.

When your license is under attack, an experienced professional license defense attorney in Waynesville can assist you in defending your rights, navigate the complaints process at your licensing Board, and put together a strong case to help you preserve your license.

The best course of action is to get in touch with a highly experienced licensed defense attorney as soon as you are notified of any issue with your licensing Board.

Professionals We Help

A professional or ethical misconduct allegation is a traumatic experience. Your expertise and integrity may now be questioned after you committed your entire career to your profession, and your survival may be in jeopardy.

Our Waynesville professional license defense attorneys have assisted professionals with this challenging process for many years. We know the gravity of these problems and the precautions you must take to stay safe. Our professional license defense lawyers serve clients all around North Carolina.

Doug Edwards Law may be able to help you if your job requires a license issued by a North Carolina Licensing Board and your license is in jeopardy due to allegations of ethical or professional misconduct. Although there are several Boards in North Carolina, we can assist you in arguing your case before them.

The majority of our customers fit in one of the following professions in the state of North Carolina:

• Accountants
• Pharmacists
• Doctors
• Nurses
• Lawyers
• Dentists
• Veterinarians

Our legal team represents professionals by implementing different strategies, including:

• Defending you in administrative disciplinary processes
• Offering private advisory views on morality-related matters
• Conducting consultations on preventative risk management
• Upholding your integrity and fitness when applying for a license
• Ensuring that you safeguard your career and reputation at all times

Contact a Trusted Waynesville Professional License Defense Attorney!

When defending clients in administrative hearings, the lawyers at Doug Edwards Law bring years of experience to the table. Our professional license defense attorneys represent professionals in all types of administrative hearings. We make sure that our clients get the best legal counsel possible.

You cannot afford to represent yourself at a disciplinary hearing if you don’t want to risk your career. Our Waynesville professional license defense lawyers will assist you in defending against any allegations threatening your ability to practice your profession.

Work with a team of experienced and dedicated attorneys when your career is hanging in the balance. To decide how to proceed during an administrative hearing, call (828) 702-8743 to set up a free initial consultation with the dedicated attorneys at Doug Edwards Law.